Rooting for Ballymaloe

It's hard to believe Ballymaloe Relish is 25 years-old, and now it has been joined on shop shelves by a sibling, Ballymaloe Irish Beetroot. Yasmin Hyde, Myrtle Allen's daughter, wanted to make a pickled beetroot product, but had to find a farmer to grow the beets for her. In stepped Joe Hartnett, who agreed to plant eight acres, and the first crop is now in SuperValu (€2.99/450g).

“In place of the usual spirit vinegar we have chosen a high quality white wine vinegar, for a smoother tasting pickle,” said Yasmin. The result is a slightly sweeter taste and more rounded flavour than traditional pickled beetroot slices.

Homemade Dim Sum

Dim Sum, translated literally, means "to touch your heart", and if you're in love with these flavour-packed Chinese delicacies, here's a book that demystifies their creation. Helen and Lisa Tse run the Sweet Mandarin restaurant and cookery school in Manchester. They're reality TV stars too, having been through Gordon Ramsay's F Word, on which they were voted best local Chinese restaurant, and Dragons' Den, where they secured funding for their range of sauces.

Practice makes perfect when it comes to pleating and folding techniques, but clear instructions and step-by-step photos help you along. In his foreword Ken Hom says their recipes, and accompanying notes "are helpful and insightful even to someone who has cooked and taught Chinese cooking for so many years".

Dim Sum. Small Bites Made Easy, is published by Kyle Books, £16.99.

Chinese New Year

The Dublin Chinese New Year Festival runs from today until February 28th, with events taking place all over the city to herald the year of the sheep.

The Asia Market, 18 Drury Street, is running a free tour of the shop on Friday, February 20th (5.30pm-6.30pm), at which the basic ingredients required to prepare and cook an authentic Chinese meal will be discussed and demonstrated. This has to be pre-booked by emailing evap@asiamarket.ie.

There are free cooking demos, using Amoy sauces, in the shop between noon and 5pm, next Thursday to Sunday (no booking required).

Flipping pancakes

Buy extra eggs this weekend as the chances are high you'll be asked to make pancakes next Tuesday. If, unlike me, you're not a throw it all in a bowl and hope it will be okay type of pancake maker, Lilly Higgins has come up with some new recipes, in conjunction with Dairygold.

Her recipes include this decadent one for pancakes with fleur de sel caramel sauce, with mixed berry butter (left), and one with dill and smoked salmon, see yourdairygold.ie

Michelin mix in Galway

JP McMahon and Ultan Cooke, chefs at Aniar in Galway, have launched a new ordering system at the Michelin-starred restaurant.

Customers can elect to have two, six, eight or 10 courses, starting at €35 (€50 with wine pairings). The ultimate 10-course tasting menu is €100 (€150 with wines). The owners hope the new menu will give customers more flexibility, and the two-course option will make the restaurant more accessible. “The menu is the interface between the customer and the kitchen. Our new format allows the guest to create their own unique dining experience,” said Cooke.

Last year Aniar introduced a ticket system, whereby the price of the menu depended on the day and time booked; this system will also apply to the new format six-course menu. See aniarrestaurant.ie.